The Minutes of the meeting held on 30 October
2018 were approved as a correct record.

Further to Minute
172/18 – Surrey Schools and Early Years Funding – the
Cabinet Member for All-Age Learning reported that the Leader had
written to the Secretary of State and had received a response
regarding clawback of excessive school balances. The Secretary of State had responded that this was
not possible and would require new primary legislation and that
even his department had no power to clawback excesses.

All Members present are
required to declare, at this point in the meeting or as soon as
possible thereafter

(i)Any disclosable pecuniary interests and /
or

(ii)Other interests arising under the Code of Conduct in
respect of any item(s) of business being considered at this
meeting

NOTES:

·Members are reminded that they must not participate
in any item where they have a disclosable pecuniary
interest

·As well as an interest of the Member, this includes
any interest, of which the Member is aware, that relates to the
Member’s spouse or civil partner (or any person with whom the
Member is living as a spouse or civil partner)

·Members with a significant personal interest may
participate in the discussion and vote on that matter unless that
interest could be reasonably regarded as prejudicial.

There were two questions from members of the
public. These and the responses are
attached as Annex A.

Minutes:

There were two questions from members of the
public. These and the responses are
attached as Annex A.

In response to a supplementary question from
Mr Welling the Cabinet Member for Community Services explained that
consultation would start in early December and was to last for four
to six weeks. The choices as to what
NewSPAL had proposed would be laid out
clearly in the consultation as well as the status quo
option. She went on to explain that the
need to consult again had been a real concern for the
Cabinet. The Leader thanked
NewSPAL for all the work they had
done.

In reply to a statement from Ms Thornton that
the written response did not address her questions the Cabinet
Member for Environment & Transport explained that much of what
she raised was outside of the control of this Council. He stated that her questions would be passed onto
the Government Minister.

There is one report from the Environment
Select Committee with reference to Item 9 on the agenda: Update To
The Surrey Transport Plan: Strategies And Associated Developer
Guidance Regarding Emissions Reduction.

This Cabinet report seeks
approval to award a contract to Thrive Tribe to commence on 1 April
2019. The recommended contract delivers best value for money and
meets the needs of service users in Surrey.

N.B. There is a Part 2 Annex at
Item 12

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Health, Integration
& Commissioning Select Committee]

That a contract beawarded for the provision of a stop smoking service
to Thrive Tribe. (The contract will be for three years from 1 April 2019 with an
option to extend for an additional three years in one year
intervals.)

Reasons for Decision:

The existing stop smoking contract
will expire on 31 March 2019 and an extension is not possible. A
full tender process, in compliance with the requirement of Public
Contract Regulations and Procurement Standing Orders, has been
completed and the recommendations provide best value for money for
the Council following a thorough evaluation process.

Helping smokers to quit now reduces the cost of care
in the future. The Care Act 2014 requires councils with social care
responsibilities to put in place preventive measures designed to
reduce the need for care and support in the future. Helping smokers
quit now means that they are less likely to require paid for care
in the future.

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Health, Integration
& Commissioning Select Committee]

Minutes:

The Cabinet Lead Member for
People introduced a report that set out data to show that effective
stop smoking services have a positive effect on the health and
wellbeing of Surrey residents and prevented the need for more
intensive and costly interventions from health, social care and the
wider public service sector. The
provision of an effective stop smoking service had an active role
in supporting the Council’s Vision for Surrey in 2030 and was
also a key priority within the NHS 10 Year Plan that focused on
prevention.

He went on to explain how
tobacco control and the provision of stop smoking services were key
to improving health and wellbeing and focus on the most vulnerable
communities which was strongly reflected in the Community Vision
for Surrey in 2030. Providing a stop smoking service supported
residents to make good choices about their wellbeing.The targeted, prioritised service model would help
to reduce the health inequalities caused by smoking, ensuring that
no one was left behind. This service was a core component of the
Surrey Health and Wellbeing Strategy, currently being refreshed as
part of the work being done to deliver the Surrey 10 year
plan.

The Cabinet Member went on to
say that this would be funded via the ring fenced Public Health
Grant, the budget for this service has been reduced following the
reduction in the overall grant distributed by the Department of
Health. The Council was aiming to maintain a quality service that
targets those residents most in need of support within the
financial resource available. However, the service was still open
to anyone wishing to quit. The
financial details were contained in a Part 2 annex to the
report.

There were several Members
speaking in favour of the recommendations.

RESOLVED:

That
a contract beawarded for the provision of a
stop smoking service to Thrive Tribe.
(The contract will be for three years from 1
April 2019 with an option to extend for an additional three years
in one year intervals.)

Reasons for Decision:

The
existing stop smoking contract expired on 31 March 2019 and an
extension was not possible. A full tender process, in compliance
with the requirement of Public Contract Regulations and Procurement
Standing Orders, had been completed and the recommendations
provided best value for money for the Council following a thorough
evaluation process.

Helping smokers to quit now reduced the cost of care
in the future. The Care Act 2014 required councils with social care
responsibilities to put in place preventive measures designed to
reduce the need for care and support in the future. Helping smokers
quit now meant that they were less likely to require paid for care
in the future.

This paper outlines the Council’s approach to
reducing transport-related air pollution and greenhouse gas
emissions through the addition of two new strategies to the Surrey
Transport Plan: the Low Emissions Transport Strategy and Electric
Vehicle Strategy. Supplementary advice documents on car clubs and
travel planning for new developments which support sustainable
development are also presented to the Cabinet.

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Environment Select
Committee]

2.
That authority be delegated to the Executive Director of Highways,
Transport & Environment to agree future revisions to the
Low Emissions Transport Strategy,
Electric Vehicle Strategy, Travel Plan Good Practice Guide and Car
Club Guide in consultation with the Cabinet Member for
Environment and Transport.

Reason for
Decision:

To ensure the Council’s transport
policies and activities support a sustainable economy and
environment and improves the health of Surrey residents.

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Environment Select
Committee]

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for
Environment & Transport introduced this report that outlined
the Council’s approach to reducing transport-related air
pollution and greenhouse gas emissions through the addition of two
new strategies to the Surrey Transport Plan, the Low Emissions
Transport Strategy and Electric Vehicle Strategy. These strategies supported the Council’s 2030
vision thatresidents
live in clean, safe and green communities, where people and
organisations embrace their environmental
responsibilities.Supplementary advice documents on car clubs and travel planning
for new developments which supported sustainable development were
also presented.

He
explained how transport was key to supporting the Surrey economy
and residents’ ability to travel where and when needed.
However, vehicle emissions were a key
cause of environmental and public health concerns. Tackling these
problems involved a variety of stakeholders, including the Council,
borough and district councils, Government, businesses and
residents.

He
went on to thank the Environment Select Committee for their
recommendations which had been included in the report.

The
Chairman of the Environment Select Committee stated that she was
pleased that all recommendations put forward had been
accepted. She also requested that a
business champion be appointed to take a lead on the quality of
electric charging installations.

There
was some discussion around electric charging points with regards to
numbers, cost of charging, locations, the national grid capacity,
the variety of charging points and whether the Council’s
website could host an interactive map showing where and what was
available in the county. The Cabinet
Member for Environment responded that Government grants were
available for residents wanting their own charging point. He also
said that all borough and district councils in Surrey now have a
policy on charging points for new properties.

RESOLVED:

1.That the proposed,

·Low Emissions Transport Strategy,

·Electric Vehicle Strategy,

·Travel Plan Good Practice Guide and

·Car Club Guide

be adopted
and become part of the Surrey Transport Plan.

2.That authority be delegated to the
Executive Director of Highways, Transport & Environment to
agree future revisions to theLow Emissions
Transport Strategy, Electric Vehicle Strategy, Travel Plan Good
Practice Guide and Car Club Guide in
consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment and
Transport.

Reason for Decision:

To
ensure the Council’s transport policies and activities
support a sustainable economy and environment and improves the
health of Surrey residents.

This report presents new Financial Regulations for Surrey County
Council, providing a framework within which officers and members
can carry out their responsibilities in an open and consistent
manner.

The
Financial Regulations have been designed to promote and maintain
the highest standards expected of the public sector in dealing with
resources, and fully reflect the Council’s current financial
position and the requirements of the Budget Accountability
Statement (BAS).

The
report also recommends that approval of the Council’s annual
Treasury Management Strategy Statement be delegated to the Audit
and Governance Committee, and the Constitution be amended
accordingly.

That the Financial Regulations
be amended before it goes to full Council, to reflect that the
Audit and Governance Committee will sign off the Treasury
Management Strategy Statement.

To RECOMMEND that Council:

1.
Approves the new Financial Regulations.

2.
Approves the annual Treasury Management Strategy Statement to the
Audit and Governance Committee.
(Members of the Audit and Governance Committee will receive
appropriate training.)

3.
Approves the necessary amendments to the Council’s
Constitution.

Reasons for
Decision:

The Council’s Annual Governance
Statement for 2017/18 identified that actions were required to
strengthen governance, including the need to revise and reinforce
the Financial Regulations. As the
Council is facing unprecedented financial pressures, a
comprehensive review is required to reflect the new financial
environment.

The Chartered
Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy’s (CIPFA)
Prudential Code and Treasury Management Code of Practice (2017)
requires local authorities to prepare a Capital and Investment
Strategy from April 2019. The
introduction of this new strategy means that approval of the annual
Treasury Management Strategy Statement may be delegated to a
sub-committee. Delegation of this
function to the Audit and Governance Committee should facilitate more active discussion of the strategy by
Members who have received specific training in this
area.

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for Corporate Support
introduced this report that presented new Financial
Regulations for the Council, providing a framework within which
Members and officers could carry out their responsibilities in an
open and consistent manner.

The report also recommended
that approval of the Council’s annual Treasury Management
Strategy Statement be delegated to the Audit and Governance
Committee, and the Constitution be amended accordingly. It was noted that the Financial Regulations did
not make this clear and it was requested that it be made so before
being presented to full Council.

RESOLVED:

That the Financial Regulations
be amended before it goes to full Council, to reflect that the
Audit and Governance Committee will sign off the Treasury
Management Strategy Statement.

To RECOMMEND that Council:

1.
Approves the new Financial Regulations.

2.
Approves the annual Treasury Management Strategy Statement to the
Audit and Governance Committee.
(Members of the Audit and Governance Committee will receive
appropriate training.)

3.
Approves the necessary amendments to the Council’s
Constitution.

Reasons for
Decision:

The Council’s Annual Governance
Statement for 2017/18 identified that actions were required to
strengthen governance, including the need to revise and reinforce
the Financial Regulations. As the
Council was facing unprecedented financial pressures, a
comprehensive review was required to reflect the new financial
environment.

The Chartered
Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy’s (CIPFA)
Prudential Code and Treasury Management Code of Practice (2017)
required local authorities to prepare a Capital and Investment
Strategy from April 2019. The
introduction of this new strategy meant that approval of the annual
Treasury Management Strategy Statement may be delegated to a
sub-committee. Delegation of this
function to the Audit and Governance Committee should facilitate more active discussion of the strategy by
Members who have received specific training in this
area.

This report presents the Council’s
financial position for 2018/19 as at 30 September 2018 for
both revenue and capital budgets. It also includes quarter end
positions for the balance sheet, reserves, debt and treasury
management.

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Corporate Overview
Select Committee]

1.
That the Council’s overall revenue and capital budget
positions as at 30 September 2018 be noted.

2.
That the changes to the structure of the Children, Families &
Learning directorate be noted.

3.
That Farnham Road rail bridge be added to the capital
programme.

4.
That the £1.8m capital virements
to transfer funds to Local Enterprise Partnerships budgets
(paragraph 68) be approved.

5.
That the Leader writes a letter to the Secretary of State for
Education, Damian Hinds, setting out how unhappy the Council was
with having to hand over public assets to academies as well as any
excess funds. On top of this the
Council retained the deficits for those forced into conversion and
the question as to why this should continue would be
put. A copy of this letter would also
be sent to Lord Porter of the Local Government Association.

Reason for
Decision:

This report is presented to comply with the
agreed policy of providing a monthly budget monitoring report to
Cabinet for approval and action as necessary.

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Corporate Overview
Select Committee]

Minutes:

The Leader introduced the
report that set out the Council’s financial position as at 30
September 2018, the end of period six. The forecast revenue position was for an
underspend against the budget of £4m, which would reduce the
need to use reserves to support this year’s budget to
£17m. This was substantially due
to the success of management actions to reduce expenditure by
£24m this year as part of the Council’s £40m
in-year cost reduction programme. He
also reported that the capital programme was on track, with a small
forecast in-year underspend.

The Leader went on to say that the council was
still facing some significant spending pressures, especially in the
area of Special Educational Needs & Disabilities. Continued exceptional demand for these services
was leading to an overspend of £15m against this
budget. However, through the success of
the in-year management actions the Council had achieved enough to
off-set these pressures. This was not
to be complacent as many of these savings would not continue into
future years and the Council remained focused on ensuring that it
had a sustainable budget. This would
enhance the financial resilience and put the Council in a better
position to face the challenges and deal with the funding
uncertainties and service pressures of future years and ensure
Surrey’s residents have sustainable local services.

Other Cabinet Members were
given the opportunity to highlight key points and issues from their
portfolios.

There
was some discussion around Schools planning and leadership
projecting a +£0.5m pressure for two sponsored academy
conversions that were likely to have deficits. The Cabinet Member for All-Age Learning explained
that where a school was forced to convert was when the Council had
to pick up the deficit and not for schools that converted of their
own accord.The Leader offered to write a letter to the Secretary
of State for Education, Damian Hinds, setting out how unhappy the
Council was with having to hand over public assets to academies as
well as any excess funds. On top of
this the Council retained the deficits for those forced into
conversion and the question as to why this should continue would be
put. A copy of this letter would also
be sent to Lord Porter of the Local Government
Association.

RESOLVED:

1.That the Council’s overall revenue
and capital budget positions as at 30 September 2018 be
noted.

That the changes to the structure of the Children,
Families & Learning directorate be noted.

That Farnham Road rail bridge be added to the
capital programme.

That the £1.8m capital virements to transfer funds to Local Enterprise
Partnerships budgets be approved.

5.That the Leader writes a letter to the
Secretary of State for Education, Damian Hinds, setting out how
unhappy the Council was with having to hand over public assets to
academies as well as any excess funds.
On top of this the Council retained the deficits for those forced
into conversion and the question as to why this should continue
would be put. A copy ...
view the full minutes text for item 192/18

The Cabinet Lead Member for People led a vote
of thanks for the Leader as this would be his last Cabinet meeting
as Leader. The Leader had served
residents with distinction and had put residents first in
everything he did and said. He would be
an impossible act to follow and the Cabinet thanked the Leader for
all that he had done for Surrey and wished him all the best for the
future.

That under Section 100(A) of
the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the
meeting during consideration of the following items of business on
the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt
information under the relevant paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A
of the Act.

RESOLVED:That under
Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be
excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following
items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely
disclosure of exempt information under the relevant paragraphs of
Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.

Minutes:

RESOLVED:That
under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public
be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following
items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely
disclosure of exempt information under the relevant paragraphs of
Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.

195/18

Approval to Award a Contract for the Provision of a Stop Smoking Service

This Part 2 report contains
information which is exempt from Access to Information requirements
by virtue of paragraph 3 – Information relating to the
financial or business affairs of any particular person (including
commercially sensitive information to the bidding
companies).

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Health, Integration
& Commissioning Select Committee]

Decision:

RESOLVED:

That a contract be awarded to Thrive Tribe, at
the value set out in this Part 2 annex report for the provision of
a Stop Smoking service to commence on 1 April 2019.

Reason for
Decision:

As per the Part 1 reason for decision.

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Health, Integration
& Commissioning Select Committee]

Minutes:

Members considered a Part 2
report that contained information which was exempt from Access to
Information requirements by virtue of paragraph 3 –
Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any
particular person (including commercially sensitive information to
the bidding companies).

RESOLVED:

That
a contract be awarded to Thrive Tribe, at the value set out in the
Part 2 annex report for the provision of a Stop Smoking service to
commence on 1 April 2019. [Exempt Minute E-25-18]

This Part 2 report contains
information which is exempt from Access to Information requirements
by virtue of paragraph 3 – Information relating to the
financial or business affairs of any particular person (including
commercially sensitive information to the bidding
companies).

It is also subject to a
Non-Disclosure Agreement.

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Corporate Overview
Select Committee]

Decision:

RESOLVED:

The Leader introduced this Part 2 report that
contained information which was exempt from Access to Information
requirements by virtue of paragraph 3 – Information relating
to the financial or business affairs of any particular person
(including commercially sensitive information to the bidding
companies). The report was also subject
to a non-disclosure agreement.

Reason for Decision:

See [Exempt Minute E-24-18].

[The
decisions on this item can be called in by the Corporate Overview
Select Committee]

Minutes:

The
Leader introduced this Part 2 report that contained information
which was exempt from Access to Information requirements by virtue
of paragraph 3 – Information relating to the financial or
business affairs of any particular person (including commercially
sensitive information to the bidding companies). The report was also subject to a non-disclosure
agreement.